You can promote English in Tamil medium schools by getting well trained teachers to teach the subject. Even though the medium of instruction is Tamil you can still teach English during the English class- one or two classes a day. But the main thing is to get competant teachers and pay them well. A retired Secretary to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs once told me to read at least one difficult book in English per month so that I could improve my English. He was of a generation of people who had very good English language skills and he knew reading books helped one to improve ones language capabilities.

You can visit the British Council where you will be able to find books by this author, as well as a whole host of other interesting novels and plays by contemporary authors.

Best of luck to you!

Hanif Kureishi is not a well known author in Sri Lanka. This country only gets a limited amount of English books and authors. It takes months to get down books from abroad and it is usually Vijitha Yapa who does it. The English book reading public is limited to Colombo Central. I miss the bookshops in developed countries including Singapore where you can spend hours browsing books and can even sit down and read some.

If Deva Kumarasiri is your role model, so be it. I now know that Hanif Kureishi is not for you.

Take it easy!

The following is from the LMD magazine of August 2009. Tara De mel(former Education Secretary) in an interview says “I strongly believe that the Government is obliged to provide all facilities, including learning material and trained teachers that are required for English medium teaching. Students should be given the opportunity to study in Sinhala, Tamil or English. The medium of instruction should be the choice of the students and their parents. The authorities have no right to prescribe what they think is best, whether this be in primary or secondary education. The Governments responsibility should be to provide the opportunities and enable those who opt for English medium instruction to do so.”
Tara goes onto state that one of the main negatives of many students is the lack of English language skills. This is amply vindicated by the huge demand for enrolments in international schools and by the large number of tuition classes offering English.

Here’s what I wrote before

” … However, my argument is against what appears to be an effort by some foolish people in Sri Lanka who have jumped on the “promote English bandwagon” and are seem to be pushing for a total change to English as the sole medium of instruction in schools. That is PURE MADNESS in my view….”

I am inclined to interpret your lack of response to my statement as a deficiency in English comprehension on your part. This is a pointless discussion.

All school children should be taught in all 3 languages. Sinhala and Tamil are already there. It is English that has suffered over the years. We need to correct that. The medium of instruction is English in some schools already. But in the majority of schools it is not the case. Therefore in the schools that do not have the medium of instruction in English it is important to have good English teachers to teach English in the few classes that are allocated for such teaching during the day. This is where good teaching comes into play. Now that the war is over the Government should put more money into education. Improving English teaching is a part of it. The teachers who were sent to India for training will come back to Sri Lanka and train our teachers here. It is not possible to send all teachers to India.
The idea is to train some teachers in India and bring them back to Sri Lanka where they in turn will train our teachers. Even Tara De Mel brought in English medium to selected schools at grade 6 and above. I do not know if that scheme is in existence anymore.

I agree that in accountancy the techinical side is as important as the language side. All CIMA qualified accountants that I know are both good in English as well as the technical side and they are very much in demand in this country and all over the world.
My question to you is can you do CIMA exams in Sinhala and Tamil ? I believe that most accountancy exams are in English.

English will not die out in this country as long as there is a demand and need for it. India has accepted it as one of its own languages. We need to accept it and need to look at ways to improve it both spoken and written.

OK, I welcome your view point that English should be taught by acredited teachers in this country. The teachers should know their English before they can teach. Those who cannot teach well should not be allowed to teach at all. In Sri Lanka the national languages are doing fine. There is no problem with Sinhala or Tamil teaching. The problem is with English teaching and the low standards of such teaching in the state and some private schools which in my view is not acceptable. I am a product of a private school and not a state or international school.
I will put the following question to you-Why is it that the standard of English is good in a few top international schools while in other schools in the country it is not so ?

As for Deva he is stressing the point that if you want to live and work in Britain you need to know English. He is absolutely correct. Language is a way to integrate. I have studied and lived in the UK and I am talking through first hand experience. You do not need to be a skinhead or a member of the British National Party to support his view. There are many people who do not belong to the skinhead category who would support what Deva said. That can include the Conservative Party, Labour, Liberal and people in general. Mr Kumarasiri is a Liberal Democrat councillor I think. At the same time you can get by with a little English in England if you want to. As I said if you run a corner shop then you do not need to integrate with the whites too much.

By the way I have never used the word “godaya” in my writing. It is you who is using it in each and every post. I wonder why ?

If you read my earlier posts carefully, my dear, you wouldn’t be repeating the falsehood about my having an aversion to our Lankan people learning English. I’m going to tell you for the last time, all people living in Lanka should have access to English classes taught by accredited teachers. When I say all, I mean farmers, labourers, housemaids and all blue collar workers. Among these people, there may be many who are interested in reading English dailies, listening to English radio broadcasts and watching English Tele programs. This is the very reason I stress that English is not simply a meal ticket, but a rich language that is evolving all the time; nobody can deny that. Who knows, there may even be a few potential booker prize winners among us ‘godayas’. Having said that, those who seek more lucrative employment will have an easier time finding jobs because they will not be handicapped by the language barrier.

I find it hilarious that you compare me with Deva kumarasiri, and accuse me of having an inferiority complex when it comes to English whereas, in your opinion, Deva does not. You’ve completely missed the point here. You see, if Deva could speak proper English, he wouldn’t be prancing around making a jack ass out of himself. He wouldn’t go around harassing new immigrants from non English speaking backgrounds. I wonder how he understood cockney.

In the end, Deva’s poor self-image will send him headlong into the barrel of rejects. Deva’s method of integration bombed because integration requires an understanding of the host culture as well as one’s own culture. Except for a few skinheads, the majority of the English people didn’t have time for Deva’s neo-Nazi attitude. They couldn’t care less about who was being served – English or no English; they just wanted business.

I am an old woman from the baby boomer generation, and it is precisely the reason I am shocked that someone like you, belonging to Generation X, is so clueless about new cultural trends. May I recommend Hanif Kureishi,who superbly deals with classic East/West conflicts in his novels, to you and your international school pals? You guys/gals should read, read, read more!

Jack be nimble, Jack be quick, Jack got caught into the Godaya’s web.

I went to a private school in Sri Lanka and not to an international school even though I feel that the top international school students in general have done better in English language than our state/private school students. There are reasons for that. One reason is that they have good English language teachers. The international schools pay their teachers good salaries that is why they are able to find and retain good teachers. Another reason is that quite a few students who go to international schools in general come from families that know English so it is easier for the student to pick up the language.

By the way I studied arts subjects at school and my degree is in history and International Relations from a UK University. I know what wide education is. I have not treated English as a meal ticket but as a way to broaden my horizons as you say.
By the way what have you studied ?

I can also tell you that to get employed in Sri Lanka in a service industry or any other organisation for that matter you need English. One of the first things that an employer looks for is English. You need English to pass CIMA exams as well because that is a British exam. All Sri Lankan accountants with CIMA qualifications have passed their exams because of a good knowledge of English and maths. There is no doubt about it. There is also a move by the Sri Lanka law college to make English compulsary for its students from this year which is a good thing in my opinion. In addition, Sri Lankan universities are also trying very hard to teach its students English in the first year of their studies so that they can broaden their horizons. This is especially true of the arts and law faculties.

I fail to understand your stance on the subject of English living in a North American country where English is the main language I presume. Obvioulsy you do not want to integrate into the society that you live in ( Deva Kumarasiri has) and you seem to be suffering from an inferiority complex where English is concerned.
There is no difference between hoity toity imperialist baggage and learning English language. English is English.
By the way I have also traveled widely in Sri Lanka and continue to do so something which you have perhaps not done because you seem to live in a western country. You cannot be in two countries at the same time can you ?

By the way why don’t you have an interesting discussion with a village boy/girl if that is what you want to do. No one is stopping you. It is you who is being unrealistic as you live abroad and cannot seem to relate to this country. I have a feeling that you do not wish to live in Sri Lanka anymore because you might be earning a dollar salary and enjoying life in the west even though you seem to have reservations about us Sri Lankans who are promoting English language teaching and learning in this country. That is hypocrisy. Otherwise what else can it be ?

Lordy, Lordy! Deva Kumarasiri has become the role model for Overseas School/ International School fellows. Yes, my dear, Deva is doing well. I even heard that the skinheads in England were elated, and reportedly went around saying: “Look mate, there’s a Paki on our side”!

I’m not going to talk about the Diaspora anymore with you as you have no clue about it. Your perception of the West is outmoded; it has no bearing in the East/West connections among young people today.

I still stand my ground that English is a necessity for everyone minus the hoity toity imperialist baggage that some Lankans still lug around. My goviya relatives didn’t treat English as a meal ticket, but felt the importance of learning English had to do with widening one’s horizons.

It seems that whatever educational institute you attended – in Lanka or in England-the only thing that was imparted to you was learning English for material gain. Did you at least learn English literature, classical/modern music, art, philosophy at the place(s) you studied?

I think Overseas Schools/International Schools are miserably failing if their goal is to turn students into money makers. I would’ve had a far more interesting discussion with a village school boy/girl, who would’ve had far more depth and better understanding of Sri-Lanka, as a result of she/he being more grounded and in touch with reality.

Goviyas: “get up stand up, stand up for your rights”!

I agree with you when you say that a good knowledge of English is absolutely essential. For example Dayan Jayathilleke did a superb job defending the Government in Geneva. One reason for his success is his superb command of the English language both spoken and written.

I agree with you completely when you said that “I also found that teachers who had no knowledge of english discouraged others from learning it purely because of a feeling of inferiority.”

The feeling of inferiority is still around.

So a few Trinity College educated farmers spoke in English and got by. But the majority of farmers in this country do not speak English and can get by without it if they want to remain farmers that is. But I can assure you that if one wants to work in a service sector job such as a bank in this country then one is going to need English. North America and Sri Lanka are two very different countries. But even in North America if a customer wants to be served in English the banker must know his/her English. He/ she cannot serve the customer in Sinhala/Tamil.
At the end of the day the lingua franca of North America is English. English and French are the official languages of Canada while in the US there is no official language, but English is the most widely used.
I can also tell you that even in multicultural in Britain if one is to pass examinations or look for jobs in a bank, service sector organisation or in Government then one is definitely going to need a good knowledge of English.
I have studied and lived in the UK and I know that people from different countries and cultures speak their own languages at home in the UK but when they go to work they definitely speak, write and read in English. I also know Sri Lankan families living in the UK who are very keen on giving their children a good English education. Some even send their children to expensive private schools.
Did you read about the Sri Lankan named Deva Kumarasiri who worked in a post office in the UK who refused to serve customers who did not speak with him in English. His logic is that if you do not know English then do not live in England. Deva said “Anyone who doesn’t make an effort to learn English doesn’t want to integrate. If people come to live in this country they should fully embrace British culture.”
I know he was sacked for his stand, but I agree with what he said. He had the right to say what he had to say and what he fervently believed in.

I do not have a slavish notion of the west. The west has good as well as bad. What I have said is a fact. I have friends who have married westerners( whites as well as non-whites etc.) and they live in western countries.
You need English to do well in the west-jobs, schools etc but you can get by with sinhala or tamil as long as you live within the confines of the diaspora. But if you want to integrate with the white culture you need English. All western Governments are concerned about immigrants and the way they integrate into society. One way to do that is to learn English.

The year 2009 was declared by the Government as the Year of English and IT. A Presidential Task Force headed by Sunimal Fernando was established to improve the standard of English and Information Technology of our younger generation. The Education Department together with the Presidential Task Force launched a mechanism to improve the teaching methods of English and Information Technology at grassroots level based on the methods adopted in India.

Accordingly, 40 teachers who had followed the `Communicative English’ scholarship program at the English and Foreign Language University in Hyderabad will be utilized to train other English teachers who are serving at Government schools. The 40 teachers will function as English Language Master Trainers.

This shows that the Government has taken serious note of the poor standard of English in state schools especially rural ones and is doing something about it.
I support the programme and give credit to the Government for trying. There is nothing to loose by trying.

That is reading | Writing | Listening | Speaking.

English was the language of our last colonizer. BUT it had also become an international language.

Therefore, we MUST learn English to participate properly and accurately in world affairs to represent ourselves. If the SInhala do NOT learn ENGLISH and PUT their case before the WORLD WHO IS GOING TO DO IT FOR US.

Everyone should learn your own Ethnic Language AND ENGLISH. Mathematics is a language we learn Maths so MUST WE LEARN ENGLISH.

I believe EXTRA ONE YEAR HAS TO BE GIVEN TO ALL SCHOOL LEAVERS TO LEARN ENGLISH. AFTER THEIR A/L EXAMS.